Leg band for fowl



March 7, 1950 w. L. WHITE LEG BAND FOR FOWL Filed Dec. 11, 1944 Patented Mar. 7, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LEG BAND FOR FOWL William L. White, Marion, Ohio Application December 11, 1944, Serial No. 567,734

7 Claims.

This invention relates to a leg band for fowl and it is primarily an object of the invention to provide a band of this kind as an aid in culling out non-laying birds.

Another and particular object of the invention is to provid a band of this kind for use in connection with chickens, turkeys, pigeons and other birds to save time in culling out poultry flocks by providing means to aid in detecting hens that are nonlayers or poor layers and which permits of such culling by a poultry keeper who is not skilled in judging the hens by certain characteristics as is necessary in the method of culling hens now generally employed. 7

The invention consists in the details of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts of my improved leg band for fowl whereby certain important advantages are attained, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order that my invention may be the better understood, I will now proceed to describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure l is an elevational view of a blank from which is produced the detector as comprised in the invention as herein embodied;

Figure 2 is an edge view of the detector as illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view showing the detector in applied cr working position and taken on the section line 3-3 of Figure 4; and

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on the line i4 of Figure 3.

As disclosed in the accompanying drawings, B denotes a band which is to be applied to the leg of a hen after the well known fashion, and carried by this band B is a detector D.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the detector D comprises a disk I of predetermined radius which may be made of such material possessing sufficient rigidity but which can be bent, crushed or otherwise distorted under abnormal strain or stress.

The detector D may be made of paper, cloth or other sheet material and, to facilitate its effectiveness, such sheet may be treated, immersed or coated with a wax, adhesive or similar material which will cause the detector to better retain both its normal and abnormal shape and position.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the central portion of the disk I from its center to a desired distance therebeyond is provided therearound with the radial cuts a whereby is produced the prong-like lugs 2 which, when the disk I is applied to the band B, bend outwardly in oppositely extending directions, as shown in Figure 3, and have close contact with the periphery of the band B' to which the lugs 2 are adhes'ively or otherwise permanently secured.

The disk I is provided, when the lugsv 2 are outwardly folded in oppositely extending directions, with a central opening 3 which snugly receives the band B and the peripheral portion of the disk I is provided therearound with the radial slits or cuts 27 open at the peripheral edges of the disk whereby are provided the wings 4 which initially are substantially coplanar and in such relative position when the band B initially applied to th'e'leg of a hen.

As is clearly illustrated in Figure 4 of the drawings, the band B and th adjacent portion of the disk I are. split, whereby the application of the device to the leg of a fowl may be readily effected. The band B is to be held to the legin any manner desired although it has been found practical to effect this securement by the use of strings or wire as well as other known fastening methods. As the means for anchoring the band to th leg itself forms no part of the present invention, it is not believed that a detailed description and illustration thereof are required.

When a hen that hashad applied to her leg the improved band, sets on a nest to lay an egg, her body and leg movements, scrambling in getting on and off the nest or getting adjusted and settled in th nest, produces stress and strain upon the wings 4, causing part or all of them to become bent, crushed, twisted or otherwise distorted from their normal coplanar relation. This condition of any of the wings i will indicate that the hen has been on the nest and will indicate that the hen is a layer or egg producer.

When a hen carries my improved band over a reasonable period of time during egg-laying season or when the flock is'in eg producing condition, and the detectors retain their normal shape, it will then be indicated that such hen has not been on a nest and, therefore, is a nonlayer and should be culled from the flock.

If desired, the wings 4 may be colored, as red, to facilitate quick detection by the keeper, and if desired such wings may also have applied thereto a luminous paint to permit night culling.

In the method now generally used for culling fowl, the keeper is required to check certain characteristics of the fowl as by judging the comb, eyelids, eyes, ear lobes, etc. Many poultry keepers 'donot acquire this skill with the result that many non-producing hens are allowed to remain within the flock and thus become a liability. With the use of the detector type of band as herein embodied, the poultry keeper needs have no especial skill in connection with the characteristics of poultry. The present device, however, is not a substitute for the skilled technique of culling a flock but is merely an additional means whereby the characteristics of leg of a fowl, and parts carried by the band dis- 'tortable under stress or strain.

2. As a new article of manufacture, a disklike leg band for fowl, and outstanding wings carried by said band, said wings being normally rigid but distorting under stress or strain im- 1..

posed thereon.

3. As a new article of manufacture, as disk-like leg band for fowl, and outstanding wings carried by said band, said wings being normally rigid but distorting under stress or strain imr. posed thereon, said wings being initially substantially coplanar.

4. As a new article of manufacture, a disklike band adapted for application to and around a leg of a bowl, and bendable elements carried by the band in a prescribed arrangement there- 'on and adapted to be permanently distorted upon the application of pressure thereto resulting from the action of the fowl assuming an egg laying position.

5. As a new article of manufacture, a flat disk member of bendable material having a central opening adapted to receive a leg of a fowl whereby the disk is maintained in encircling relation with and upon the leg, the disk having a plurality of radial slots extending inwardly from the periphery and terminating short of the central opening to provide wing members adapted to be bent from the plane of the disk under the application of strains applied thereto by the fowl in the act of assuming an egg laying position.

6. An article of manufacture of the character stated in claim 5, wherein the disk aperture is bordered by oppositely extending members adapted to maintain the disk in position on the leg of the fowl.

7. An article of manufacture as stated in claim 5, with a split tubular band extending through the aperture of the disk, and oppositely directed members integral with the disk around the periphery of the aperture and engaging the outer side of the band to maintain the disk in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the band.

WILLIAM L. WHITE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Volkmann Jan. 14, 1941 OTHER REFERENCES Number 

